BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE I finally visited StevenBe. As I mentioned in a previous article, “crafting,” especially needlecrafts, has not really been my thing. Too busy reading, writing and organizing, which are plenty creative endeavors in themselves. But I know a lot of crafters do it more as a form…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE We hit up an eclectic mix of shops and galleries all along the 3.5 mile stretch of Saint Paul’s Grand Avenue on a hot summer day in early August. The methodology was to start at an arbitrary point near the western end of the Avenue and…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE On July 29, at the North Regional Hennepin County Library (1315 Lowry Ave North), Twin Cities DSA held a four-hour-long Special Endorsing Meeting, which was attended by about 70 members and a couple dozen press, observers and campaign workers. There were seven candidates asking for endorsement.…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE As I was on my way to check out Encore Music, I had to walk through a deep mud patch on the sidewalk, because some heavy construction was going on. It seemed to be one of the stately old mid-size houses that liberally dot Lyndale all…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE • On July 13, Sen. Bernie Sanders played First Avenue. To be specific, Sanders appeared to speak on behalf of longtime close ally Keith Ellison, who is quitting the Congress to run for MN attorney general. The two politicians’ rousing speeches were preceded by musical acts…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE • On July 13, Sen. Bernie Sanders played First Avenue. To be specific, Sanders appeared to speak on behalf of longtime close ally Keith Ellison, who is quitting the Congress to run for MN attorney general. The two politicians’ rousing speeches were preceded by musical acts…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE In our focus on Highland Park this year, we will once again take a look at the Ford Site Development Plan. Because a lot has happened over there in the intervening year, a lot of ink has been used covering the complex debate, and there are…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The Poor People’s Campaign (PPC), which began May 14 with an announced 40-day series of actions highlighting all the major causes and intersections of poverty in the U.S., came to a close in mid-June. The last action was the first one to occur in Minneapolis, where…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Himalayan Restaurant 2910 E. Lake St., Mpls. 55406 612-332-0880 www.himalayanmomo.com Himalayan Restaurant—Nepalese, Tibetan, and Indian cuisine—has been in South Minneapolis for about 10 years. It started out in the Seward neighborhood and after about six years, at the end of 2014, moved to its present location…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Open Streets Lake-Minnehaha is happening again this year. The date is Sunday, July 22, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The route is roughly the same as last year: East Lake Street from Elliot Avenue to Minnehaha Avenue, then southeast on Minnehaha to the entrance to…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE For our focus on 66th Street, Richfield, we will look at how Richfield stacks up to Minneapolis in providing affordable and accessible life necessities, particular food and housing. But first, to get things into perspective, some comparative demographics. In the 2010 census, Richfield had a population…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The Poor People’s Campaign (PPC), which began May 14 with an announced 40-day series of actions highlighting all the major causes and intersections of poverty in the U.S., came to a close in mid-June. The last action was the first one to occur in Minneapolis, where…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The Poor People’s Campaign (PPC), which began May 14 with an announced 40-day series of actions highlighting all the major causes and intersections of poverty in the U.S., came to a close this month. We attended the last two local, public actions, one in Saint Paul…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Franklin Avenue in the Seward neighborhood has so much to offer: one of the oldest worker-owned co-op restaurants in the world, a bookstore with bicycle delivery, a playwrights’ center, a Somali cafe, a sushi and karaoke bar. But this article is not about them. It’s about…

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The month of May was not very merry, but there was a lot of radical stuff. On May 2 through 4, Mutual Aid Disaster Relief came through town on its disaster relief training tour. The Northland Health Collective helped pre-arrange the venues for the workshops. There…